Teri Lamaine, executive director of the Bonita Springs Assistance Office, pulls out some drinking water that was bottled by Coastal Beverage in Naples. They stopped the distillery and put water in beer cans to donate to the relief effort, Lamaine said.(Photo: Andrea Stetson/Correspondent)

“We’re seeing an increase in multiple generations moving in with each other because of them fixing their houses,” said Lamaine. “Our pantry out load has increased. The need’s there, and that’s what we’re here for.”

The office is moving away from providing long-term assistance to Hurricane Irma victims and is choosing instead to leave that work to organizations better suited to the task, the group said.

“We’re just starting to get back to our regular mission,” said Arden McCurdy, Board of Director member. “I think we did well (after Hurricane Irma). We helped a lot of people, but we’re going back to giving people a hand up, not a hand out.”

Hurricane Irma brought forth a massive outpouring of goodwill from the community in a time of crisis, Lamaine said.

One of the most startling figures is the pounds of food donated to the assistance office late last year.

The Bonita Springs Area Chamber of Commerce members collected 1,002 pounds of food donations for
the Bonita Springs Assistance Office at the Chamber’s Annual Harvest Night event Nov. 10. The event, surpassed its 1,000-pound goal, was hosted by the Promenade and featured live music from Brian Markley and
appetizers from DeRomo’s. From left to right: Suzanne Vendel, Teri Lamaine, Larry Vendel, and John Briers.(Photo: Submitted)

In September 2016, the assistance office received 295 pounds of food donations.

That spiked to 13,379 in September 2017 — the month Hurricane Irma struck — more than a 4,400 percent increase.

The nonprofit distributed more than 14,700 pounds of food that same month.

Trucks from Indiana and beyond traveled to the group's Bonita Springs headquarters with pallets of water and other supplies to assist those in need.

It took more than three months to pass out all of the donated water bottles that were once stacked to the ceiling, said the nonprofit

“We had families that came in and saw the work that we were doing and said, ‘You know what, in lieu of sending our grandkids a Christmas present, I just want to give you a donation,’” Lamaine said. “Direct financial assistance was priceless to people in our community.”

The assistance office gave out more than $100,000 in direct assistance to Bonita Springs residents after Hurricane Irma, according to the Bonita Springs nonprofit.

Direct handouts made up only a small portion of the help — hotel stays, utility payments, grocery shopping and gas cards were given to most people in need, Lamaine said.

“The gas cards, we gave to residents who lived in Bonita Springs but were staying in the Red Cross shelter in Estero,” she said. “So many families worked in Naples or North Naples in the restaurant or hotel business, and that extra eight miles in a five-day work week cut into their budget.”